20 amp breaker question ------ - Elmers Forum at eHam.net

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20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by NU0R on November 4, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
I am thinking of adding a small Ameritron amp to my bench and I have a question. The power supply that powers my radio is an astron 35M and it has an 8 amp fuse in it. I see that the Ameritron 811 uses an 8 amp fuse and the 811H uses a 10 amp fuse. I don't plan to push either amp very hard at all but I am not wanting to overload my breaker. My radio room has one 20 amp breaker divided among three outlets. Would I be asking for trouble by adding the amp to the mix? It looks like if I were driving everything to the limit I would be drawing 18 amps, assuming I went with the 811H amp. I don't run more than one radio at any given time and everything else that I run is very low amperage except for my E-Machine computer. I am not sure how much current it draws. The wiring is 14 guage, and the distance to the breaker box is only 25 ft. of wire or less. What do you think? Tnx, Bruce/NU0R

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by W2JD on November 4, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
You have to use a 15 Amp breaker, as #14 wire can only handle 15 AMPS. Check the National Electric Code. 73's Jose

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by W6CD on November 4, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
If you in fact do have a 20A circuit breaker on a circuit with #14 wire, that's a problem that should be corrected - it should be a 15A breaker for #14, 20A breaker for #12. Even if you have a proper 20A circuit existing, I would recommend to run a new circuit for the amplifier - preferably a 220V while you are spending the time/money/effort, but a 120V 20A would do. Vince

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by N7TCF on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
I fully agree with the previous posts regarding the improper wiring. The breaker needs to be reduced or the wire size increased. Bear in mind NEC wire sizes are the minimum for safety. Overload fuses will/should open at the rated current. The circuit will only see that level briefly. Fuses aren't a good indicator of circuit load. Circuit loading is usually done by measuring the amp draw of each device. An ampmeter should be in your tool kit. Add up the total, add 20% for safety, that is the circuit size. If it's below 15 amps, replace the breaker with a 15. If above, add a second circuit.

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by WA3SKN on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
The boys are right about having the correct breaker/wire combo. After correcting that, get yourself a clamp-ammeter and start measuring the actual current draw of your eqpt... very educational. But most stations have a separate breaker just for the amp, and at 220 volts if practical. 73s. -Mike.

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by K2YO on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
"The breaker needs to be reduced or the wire size increased." I'm curious why everyone assumes that he doesn’t have a 20A circuit. My house is full of 20A circuits and yes they are 12 gauge wire. Most electricians in my area recommend putting in 20s now days. Regarding the loading, I think I would budget to get some more power run. The 220 suggestion is a good idea and while they are running the wire, have them run another 20A 110 circuit. You can never have to may outlets or amperes. Bernie

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by W8JI on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
There is no 220V in USA residential service, and hasn't been for a long time. You might consider a 240V line if you run something bigger than an 811 amp, but the 811 amp is really best run on 120 unless you have unusual circumstances. Double check the wire size again. Maybe you have 12 ga. You could pull a 10-3 with ground line into the room and run a 120V system as long as you have the AL811, or even a four conductor 10-3 with ground and then have a choice of 120/240 at the outlet. You can see what I do here: http://www.w8ji.com/rfi_rf_grounding.htm Tom

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by N2EY on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
K2YO writes: "I'm curious why everyone assumes that he doesn’t have a 20A circuit." Because he says it's #14 wire. NEC says #14 is for 15 amp circuits or less. #12 is for 20 amps or less and #10 is for 30 amps or less. (I'm assuming copper, aluminum is a whole 'nother story). IMHO the existing breaker should be replaced with a 15 amp one, and a new 20 or even 30 amp circuit run for the amp. My ideal setup would be to put in a subpanel right in the shack, but that's probably overkill for this application. A lot depends on whether you're doing the work yourself or hiring an electrician to do it. 73 de Jim, N2EY

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by K2YO on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
"There is no 220V in USA residential service, and hasn't been for a long time. " Tom, Your splitting hairs. 220 never was really the voltage, but was a term commonly used for that circuit. For your statement to be correct, you need to have Leviton, Home Depot, Lowes, and most all electrical supply houses stop calling the receptacles and plugs for that kind of circuit, 220. Call any 10 licensed electricians out of the telephone book and ask them to install a 220 circuit and they will know exactly what you are talking about. So it's very misleading to say there is no 220V in USA residential service. If we are going to take your assertion that there are no long any 220 circuits then we don't really have 120V circuits either. Looking at my voltage at the moment, I have 125.6 volts, so we need to start calling them 125.6V lines for today. Bernie

RE: 20 amp breaker question ------	Reply
by AA4PB on November 5, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
If its indeed #14 wire then its a 15A circuit and should have a 15A breaker. 120V x 15A is 1800W. The code limits operating power to 80% or 1440W. If your amp has a 10A fuse then it can draw around 1200W maximum. You are really pretty close to max on that circuit with the amp. Now if the wire is really #12 which would have a 20A breaker then the peak power is 2400W and you can plan on a load of 1920W.

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